1. Economic Activity

The number of people aged 16 and over who were economically
active in Scotland in 2016 was 2,711,100. Over the year, the
economic activity level decreased by 25,200. This was mainly due to
a decrease in the number of 16-24 and 35-49 year old women who were
economically active.

Economically active individuals are those who are in employment
or have been actively seeking work and are available to start work,
the International Labour Organisation (
ILO)
definition of unemployment.

Of those who were economically active in 2016, 95.2 per cent
were in employment (2,579,700) while 4.8 per cent were unemployed
(131,400).

Chart 1: Economic Activity Rate (16-64), Scotland
and UK

1.1 Employment

People are classed as being in employment if they are over 16
years old and have done at least one hour of paid work in the week
prior to their Labour Force Survey (
LFS) interview or
have a job that they are temporarily away from.

People who are employees, self-employed, unpaid workers in a
family business or on Government-supported training and employment
programmes are classed as being employed under the
ILO
definition.

Employment level (16+) in Scotland was highest level on
record at 2,579,700

In 2016, the employment level (16+) in Scotland increased by
2,400 over the year to 2,579,700, the highest level since
comparable records began in 2004. Over the year, the increase in
the overall employment level was driven by increases in the number
of men who were employed. However, the employment rate (16-64) is
still below the rates seen prior to the 2008 recession.

Chart 2: Employment Rate (16-64), Scotland and
UK

The employment rate for those aged 16-64 in Scotland was higher
than that of the
UK until 2011. Since
2012, Scotland's employment rate has followed a similar trend to
that of the
UK with the rates
diverging in 2016.

Over the year, the employment rate decreased by 0.1 percentage
points in Scotland and increased by 0.4 percentage points in the
UK.

Employment rates increased in 16 local authority areas in
Scotland over the year

There is considerable variation in employment rates for those
aged 16-64 across Scotland's local authorities. The highest
employment rates were seen in Shetland Islands (86.6%), Orkney
Islands (86.0%) and Argyll & Bute (78.4%) while the lowest
employment rates were seen in North Ayrshire (64.4%), Dundee City
(66.0%) and East Ayrshire (66.3%).

Over the year, 16 of the local authority areas in Scotland saw
an increase in their employment rate while 15 saw a decrease and
one remained unchanged.

Statistically significant
[1] changes in employment rates were seen in Aberdeen City (down
6.3 percentage points from 76.5% to 70.2%) and Angus (up 4.6
percentage points from 73.7% to 78.2%).

Gap between employment rates of the top and bottom 3
performing local authorities in Scotland reduced by 0.6 percentage
points over the year

Chart 3: Employment Rates (16-64) for Top and
Bottom 3 Performing Local Authorities Scotland and UK

The gap between the employment rates of the top and bottom three
performing local authorities in Scotland reduced by 0.6 percentage
points over the year
[2].

Over the year, the gap between the employment rates of the top
and bottom three performing local authorities, as measured by the
Cohesion Purpose Target, reduced from 16.2 to 15.6 percentage
points. The gap is still wider than the 14.1 percentage points seen
at the start of the recession.

Further information about the Cohesion Purpose Target is
available at:

The employment level (16+) for men in Scotland has increased by
13,900 over the year to reach 1,334,300, the highest employment
level for men since 2008.

Over the same period, the employment level for women decreased
from 1,256,900 to 1,245,400 (down by 11,500). However, it is still
higher than the employment levels seen before and following the
2008 recession.

Chart 4: Employment Level (16+) by Gender,
Scotland

The employment (16-64) rate for women in Scotland decreased by
0.9 percentage points from 70.1 per cent in 2015 to 69.2 per cent
in 2016, driving the decrease in the overall employment rate over
the same period (down 0.1 percentage points from 73.1% to 72.9%).
However, the employment rate for men increased by 0.7 percentage
points from 76.2 per cent to 76.9 per cent.

Of the 32 local authority areas of Scotland, 15 saw increases in
their employment rates for women over the year, with the remaining
17 seeing decreases. Statistically significant changes over the
year were seen in Aberdeen City (down 8.5 percentage points from
76.4% to 67.9%) and Dundee City (up 8.9 percentage points from
60.4% to 69.3%).

For the employment rates for men across Scotland, 19 local
authorities saw increases in their employment rates over the year,
with the remaining 13 seeing decreases. Statistically significant
changes over the year were seen in Angus (up 6.3 percentage points
from 77.7% to 84.1%) and Highland (down 6.8 percentage points from
85.0% to 78.1%).

Chart 5: Employment Rate (16-64) by Gender,
Scotland

The employment rate for men in Scotland was 76.9 per cent, 0.7
percentage points higher than the rate in 2015. Since the
UK rate for men increased
by 0.4 percentage points,
i.e. slower growth over the year, the
gap between the Scotland and
UK employment rates for
men has decreased to 2.0 percentage points, from 2.3 percentage
points the year before.

The employment rate for women in Scotland was higher than the
UK rate. However, over
the year the employment rate for women decreased by 0.9 percentage
points in Scotland while it increased by 0.5 percentage points for
the
UK.

Between 2004 and 2016, the gender employment gap for Scotland
has been lower than the gender employment gap for the
UK. The gender employment
gap for Scotland has increased over the year to the same gap seen
in 2014. The increase in the gap over the year is due to a decrease
of 0.9 percentage points in the employment rate for women while the
employment rate for men increased by 0.7 percentage points.

Chart 6: Gender Employment Gap (16-64), Scotland
and UK

1.1.2 Age

Decrease over the year in the 16-24 and 35-49 age groups
was driven by women

Employment rates for 25-34 and 35-49 year olds have remained
around 80 per cent from 2004 to 2016, indicating a fairly high
resilience to economic change. In 2016, the employment rate for
25-34 year olds was 80.8 per cent while 35-49 year olds had the
highest employment rate at 81.9 per cent.

Chart 7: Employment Rates (16-64) by Age,
Scotland

Young workers (16-24) saw the main impact of the recession with
their employment rates reducing from 60.7 per cent in 2008 to 52.6
per cent in 2013, starting to recover until 2015 and then
decreasing slightly to 55.7 per cent in 2016. In contrast,
employment rates for those aged 50-64 have increased through the
recovery remaining fairly constant over the last year (68.8 per
cent in 2016).

Over the year, women are driving the decrease in the employment
rate for those aged 16-24 and those aged 35-49.

Chart 8: Employment Rates (16+) by Age and Gender,
Scotland

Highest youth (16-24) employment rates were seen in the
Orkney Islands, Midlothian and Renfrewshire

The youth employment rate in Scotland during 2016 decreased by
0.7 percentage points over the year from 56.4% to 55.7%, while the
UK rate decreased by 0.1
percentage points from 53.6% to 53.5%. The current youth employment
rates in both Scotland and the
UK remain lower than the
rates in 2008 (down 5.0 and 2.4 percentage points
respectively).

Across Scotland, the highest youth employment rates were seen in
the Orkney Islands (78.1%), Midlothian (76.9%) and Renfrewshire
(71.8%) while the lowest rates were seen in Clackmannanshire
(35.4%), Edinburgh City (39.9%) and East Ayrshire (44.7%).

Over the year, 19 of the local authority areas in Scotland saw
an increase in their youth employment rates while the remaining 13
saw a decrease.

Statistically significant changes over the year were seen in
Aberdeen City (down 19.1 percentage points from 63.9% to 44.8%),
Midlothian (up 19.7 percentage points from 57.2% to 76.9%) and
North Lanarkshire (up 13.2 percentage points from 57.0% to
70.2%).

Over half of workers over state pension age (65+) in
Scotland said they had not yet retired because they were not ready
to stop working

The employment rate for older workers (50+) in Scotland has been
increasing steadily from 35.7% in 2004 to 40.3% in 2016, driven
by:

the employment level for 50-64 year olds rising from 573,200
to 742,400, with their employment rate increasing from 61.9% to
68.8%

the employment level for those aged 65 and over rising from
41,200 to 89,300, with their employment rate increasing from 5.2%
to 9.1%

Women accounted for 54 per cent of the increase in those aged
50-64, whilst men accounted for around 55 per cent of the increase
in those aged 65+. The shift in both cases is mainly from
inactivity to employment (delaying retirement or moving back into
work from either retirement or sickness)

In 2016, there were 89,300 workers in Scotland who were over the
state pension age (65+), up 8,800 over the year.

The main reason given for remaining in work was that they were
not ready to stop work yet (56.2%)
[4].

11.2 per cent had chosen to remain in work to pay for essential
items (
e.g. bills) while 7.6 per cent
had remained in work to boost their pension pot.

1.1.3 Disability

Gap between employment rates of disabled and non-disabled
people increases with age

In 2016, the employment rate for those classed as disabled under
the Equality Act 2010
[5] was 37.3 percentage points lower than the employment rate
for those not classed as disabled.

The gap between the employment rates for disabled and
non-disabled people has decreased over the year by 1.1 percentage
points, which is due to the employment rate for disabled people
increasing by 0.9 percentage points and the employment rate for
those not classed as disabled decreasing by 0.1 percentage
points.

The Equality Act Disabled employment rate was 42.9 per cent in
Scotland overall. The highest rates were seen in the Shetland
Islands (72.5%), East Dunbartonshire (58.6%), Argyll and Bute
(57.1%), Perth and Kinross (55.6%) and Angus (53.9%).

The employment rate gap between Equality Act Disabled and not
Equality Act Disabled women was lower than the gap for men in 2016
(33.2 and 41.5 percentage points respectively).

The employment rate gap for Equality Act Disabled and not
Equality Act Disabled people increases with age.

Young (16-24) disabled people have the lowest employment rate
gap at 23.0 percentage points. However, they have the lowest
employment rates for Equality Act disabled (35.7%) and not Equality
Act disabled (58.7%) people. Older workers (50-64) have the largest
employment gap at 44.1 percentage points, reflecting greater health
issues faced by those in this age group.

From 2004 to 2016, the employment rate for ethnic minorities
aged 16-64 in Scotland is continually lower than the employment
rate for ethnic white people. In 2016, the employment rate for
ethnic minorities was 57.6 per cent (down 1.3 percentage points
from 58.9% in 2015) compared to an employment rate of 73.7 per cent
for ethnic white people (up 0.1 percentage points), an employment
rate gap of 16.2 percentage points.

The employment rates for ethnic minorities varied across
Scotland with the highest rates being seen in Lanarkshire (75.1%)
and the Highland and Islands (73.3%)
[6].

The employment rate gap is mainly driven by the much lower
employment rate for minority ethnic women compared to the
employment rate for ethnic white women, an employment rate gap of
around 26 percentage points. In contrast, the gap in employment
rates between minority ethnic men and ethnic white men is around 6
percentage points
[7].

Chart 14: Employment Rates (16-64) by Ethnic Group
and Age, Scotland

Looking at the minority ethnic and white ethnic employment rates
broken down by age, it can be seen that the employment rate for
ethnic minorities aged 16-24 is 38 percentage points lower than the
white ethnic group of the same age. This employment rate gap
decreases with age with the oldest age group (50-64) having higher
employment rates in the minority ethnic group than in the white
ethnic group
[7].

The proportion of people aged 16+ in full-time employment was
fairly constant until the start of the recession. Following the
recession, the proportion in full-time employment gradually
decreased until 2012 when it started to recover. However, it is yet
to recover to proportions seen prior to 2008.

Chart 15: Employment Level (16+) by Working
Pattern, Scotland

The full-time employment level increased by 14,700 over the year
to reach 1,885,800 in 2016. This increase was driven by an increase
in the number of men who were in full-time employment (up 16,700
over the year). The current level is still 18,000 lower than the
level seen in 2008 (1,903,800).

The part-time employment level decreased from 701,900 in 2015 to
688,300 in 2016 (down 13,600 over the year). This was driven by a
decrease in the number of women who were in part-time employment
(down 10,000 over the year). The part-time employment level is
still 63,200 higher than the level seen in 2008.

Of the part-time workers who gave a reason for working
part-time, 67.6 per cent stated they did not want a full-time job
while 14.1 per cent stated they could not find a full-time job.

Highest self-employment level and rate on
record

Chart 16: Proportion of all in Employment who are
Self-employed (16+) by Gender, Scotland

The number of people aged 16+ who are self-employed in Scotland
has increased by 29,800 over the year to reach 327,200, the highest
self-employment level on record.

This was driven by record high self-employment levels for men
and women (up 19,300 for men and 10,500 for women).

Decrease in underemployment driven mainly by decreases for
women aged 16-49 in part-time work

One of the National Indicators in the Government's National
Performance Framework is to reduce the proportion of workers who
are underemployed.

Chart 17: Underemployment Rate (16+) by Age,
Scotland

The underemployment
[8] level for those aged 16 and over in Scotland decreased by
20,100 over the year to 213,100, with the rate decreasing by 0.8
percentage points from 9.2 per cent to 8.4 per cent.

The decrease in underemployment over the year was mainly driven
by decreases in levels for women working part-time (down 19,400)
although smaller decreases were also seen for women in full-time
work.

All age groups saw decreases over the year in underemployment,
with 16-24, 25-34 and 35-49 year olds seeing the largest decreases
(down 6,400; 5,900 and 5,200 respectively).

Underemployment is still higher in most local authorities
than it was prior at the start of the 2008 recession

The local authority areas with the highest underemployment rates
in 2016 were Shetland Islands (21.3%), Na h-Eileanan Siar (11.7%)
and Highland and North Ayrshire (both 11.3%), while the lowest
rates were seen in North Lanarkshire (5.1%), East Dunbartonshire
(5.6%) and Clackmannanshire (5.8%).

Underemployment rates reduced in 20 local authority areas over
the year, while 11 saw increases and one remained unchanged.
Statistically significant changes were seen over the year in the
Scottish Borders (down 3.7 percentage points from 13.2% to 9.5%),
Shetland Islands (up 10.7 percentage points from 10.6% to 21.3%),
West Lothian (up 2.8 percentage points from 5.0% to 7.8%) and for
Scotland overall (down 0.8 percentage points from 9.2% to
8.4%).

However, underemployment remains higher in most local authority
areas than in 2008, with 24 local authorities having a higher rate
and 6 having a lower rate than in 2008. Statistically significant
changes in the underemployment rates between 2008 and 2016 were
seen in Aberdeenshire (up 3.4 percentage points from 5.9% to 9.3%),
East Renfrewshire (up 2.9 percentage points from 4.1% to 7.0%) and
for Scotland overall (up 1.4 percentage points from 7.0% to
8.4%).

Overall, the largest employing sector in 2016 in Scotland was
Public Admin, Education and Health (31.2%). This was the largest
employing sector across all local authority areas. At Scotland
level, this was followed by Distribution, Hotels and Restaurants
(18.8%) and Banking and Finance the third largest sector
(16.0%).

The smallest employing sectors in Scotland overall were
Agriculture and Fisheries (1.8% overall), although accounting for
over 10 per cent of all employment in Shetland Islands (10.4%) and
Dumfries and Galloway (10.1%).

Also Energy and Water accounts for 3.4 per cent of overall
employment in Scotland, although accounting for 14.0 per cent in
Aberdeenshire and 10.8 per cent in Aberdeen City.

Gains in employment levels seen over the year in the
Transport and Communication and Construction sectors

Chart 18: Change in the Number of People Employed
over the year (16+) by Industry and Gender, Scotland

Over the year to 2016, the largest increase in employment levels
was seen in the Transport and Communication sector (up 11,800). By
Local Authority, 9,000 of the increase in Transport and
Communication occurred in the City of Edinburgh, with this sector
increasing to account for 12.8 per cent of employment of people who
live in Edinburgh.

The number of people employed in the Construction industry
increased by 8,500 over the year, with 6,000 of the increase
occurring in the City of Glasgow.

The largest decrease in employment level was seen in the
Manufacturing sector (down 22,100), with largest decreases in this
sector occurring in South Lanarkshire, Glasgow and Edinburgh.

Gender segregation remains a persistent issue across
several industry sectors and occupational groups in
Scotland

Chart 19: Proportion of all in Employment (16+) by
Industry and Gender, Scotland

Although equality legislation has been in place for many years
[9] gender segregation is still apparent in many industry
sectors in Scotland.

Almost half of women in Scotland (45.4%) work in the Public
Admin, Education and Health sector (Note this is not the same as
the Public Sector).

Over two-fifths (42.6%) of men work in sectors that exhibit high
levels of gender segregation: Construction (11.9%), Transport and
Communication (11.3%), Manufacturing (11.1%), Energy and Water
(5.5%) and Agriculture and Fishing (2.9%).

Gender segregation across the various occupational groups shows
a similar picture to that seen across industry sectors with
specific occupational groups showing high levels of
segregation.

Chart 20: Proportion of all in Employment (16+) by
Occupation and Gender, Scotland

44.8 per cent of women in Scotland were employed in occupations
that are gender segregated towards women: Administrative and
Secretarial (16.7%), Personal Service (16.1%) and Sales and
Customer Service occupations (12.1%).

29.7 per cent of men in Scotland were employed in occupations
that exhibit high levels of gender segregation: Skilled Trades
(18.8%) and Process, Plant and Machine Operatives (10.9%).

Private sector employment in 2016 increased by 9,900 over
the year to 1,888,000 - the highest level on record since the
series began

Since the series began in 2004, there have been increases in the
number of those aged 25-34, 50-64 and 65+ employed in the private
sector (up 74,400, 119,800 and 38,300 respectively) while the
number of those aged 16-24 and 35-39 employed in the private sector
has decreased (down 34,900 and 29,200 respectively).

Chart 21: Changes in Public and Private Sector
Employment since 2004, Scotland

Since 2008, the increases seen in private sector employment have
been driven by increases in part-time employment (up 61,200), while
full-time employment increased by 11,400.

In contrast the decreases seen in the public sector
[10] since 2008 were driven by decreases in full-time employment
levels (down 33,600).

1.1.7 Education, Skills and Training

A record high 49.2 per cent of working people (aged 16-64)
have Further or Higher education qualifications in
Scotland

In Scotland in 2016, 49.2 per cent of working people (16-64) had
SVQ
level 4+ qualifications (Further or Higher education qualifications
(or equivalent)). This is the highest proportion on record. The
increase in the proportion with
SVQ
level 4 or higher qualifications is being driven by the highest
level of workers with Degree or Professional qualifications
(812,100), up 19,800 since 2015.

Chart 22: Proportion of 16-64 year olds in
Employment by Highest Qualifications, Scotland

Those with
SVQ
level 4 or higher qualifications are the largest group in Scotland
and the
UK (49.2% and 43.4%
respectively). The general trend towards higher level
qualifications is similar for Scotland and the
UK, with this being the
first year in which
SVQ
level 4 or higher was the largest group in the
UK.

People with Further and Higher education qualifications (
SVQ
level 4+) have higher employment rates than those with lower
SVQ
level qualifications

Chart 23: Employment Rates (16-64) by Highest
Qualification, Scotland

Those with
SVQ
level 4+ qualifications have higher employment rates than those
with lower
SVQ
level qualifications.

In 2016, the employment rate for those with
SVQ
level 4+ qualifications (82.3%) is 34.4 percentage points higher
than the employment rate for those with below
SVQ
level 2 qualifications and 12.2 percentage points higher than those
with
SVQ
2-3 qualifications.

The employment rate for those with
SVQ
level 4+ qualifications varies by local authority. The local
authorities with the highest employment rates for those with
SVQ
level 4+ qualifications are Falkirk (89.1%), Argyll and Bute
(87.4%) and Na h-Eileanan Siar (87.3%).

35.8 per cent (757,000) of workers in Scotland aged 25-64
were graduates in 2016 - the highest on record

Chart 24: Proportion of Graduates (25-64) in
Employment, Scotland

The proportion of 25-64 year olds in Scotland who were graduates
in 2016 was the highest seen since the series began in 2004. This
was driven by increases in 18 local authority areas over the
year.

The largest increases were seen in the Orkney Islands (up 6.5
percentage points to 19.5%), Clackmannanshire (up 6.4 percentage
points to 28.8%) and South Lanarkshire (up 5.8 percentage points to
33.4%).

The proportion of those receiving job-related training decreased
over the year in 20 local authorities over the year while the
proportion in the remaining 12 local authorities increased.

Statistically significant changes were seen in Aberdeen City
(down 6.6 percentage points from 33.4% to 26.8%), Aberdeenshire
(down 6.7 percentage points from 28.4% to 21.7%), Falkirk (down 8.7
percentage points from 28.9% to 20.3%), North Lanarkshire (down 6.1
percentage points from 20.1% to 14.0%), Perth and Kinross (down 5.8
percentage points from 29.4% to 23.6%), South Lanarkshire (down 6.2
percentage points from 23.3% to 17.1%), West Lothian (down 10.8
percentage points from 30.4% to 19.6%) as well as Scotland overall
(down 3.0 percentage points from 25.8% to 22.8%).

1.2 Unemployment

People aged 16 and over are classed as being unemployed, under
the
ILO
definition, if they are: not in employment, would like a job, have
actively sought work in the previous four weeks prior to their
LFS interview and
are available to start work within the next fortnight; or are out
of work and have accepted a job which they are waiting to start in
the fortnight following their
LFS interview.

Unemployment rate in Scotland decreased by 1.0 percentage
point over the year to 4.8 per cent in 2016, lower than the
UK rate

Chart 27: Unemployment Rate (16+), Scotland and
UK

The unemployment rate in Scotland in 2016 was 4.8 per cent,
lower than the
UK rate of 4.9 per
cent.

Over the year, the rate has decreased in both Scotland and the
UK (down 1.0 and 0.4
percentage points respectively).

Scotland's unemployment rate has decreased slightly since 2008
while it decreased by 0.8 percentage points in the
UK.

There were 131,400 people aged 16 or over who were unemployed in
Scotland, a decrease of 27,600 over the year. This was mainly due
to a decrease in the number of men who were unemployed, down 18,400
over the year.

Unemployment rates decreased across the majority of
Scotland's local authorities over the year to 2016

Model Based Unemployment
[12] (
MBU) rates
decreased in 26 of Scotland's 32 local authorities over the
year.

In 2016, the highest
MBU rates were
seen in North Ayrshire (7.8%), Dundee City (7.0%), East Ayrshire
and Glasgow City (both 6.5%) and the lowest rates were seen in
Orkney Islands (2.6%), Shetland Islands (2.8%) and Perth and
Kinross (3.4%)

Over the year
MBU rates
decreased in 26 of the 32 local authority areas while 6 saw an
increase in their unemployment rates. Statistically significant
changes were seen in Aberdeenshire (up 1.1 percentage point from
2.7% to 3.8%), Fife (down 1.7 percentage points from 6.6% to 4.9%),
Glasgow City (down 2.2 percentage points from 8.7% to 6.5%),
Inverclyde (down 2.1 percentage points from 7.8% to 5.7%), North
Lanarkshire (down 2.1 percentage points from 6.9% to 4.8%), West
Lothian (down 1.5 percentage points from 5.8% to 4.3%) and for
Scotland overall (down 1.0 percentage point from 5.8% to 4.8%).

MBU rates have
decreased in 16 of the 32 local authority areas since 2008,
increased in 13 local authority areas and 3 remained unchanged.
Statistically significant changes were seen in Aberdeen City (up
1.8 percentage points from 3.6% to 5.4%) and Aberdeenshire (up 1.3
percentage points from 2.5% to 3.8%).

1.2.1 Gender

Chart 28: Unemployment Rate (16+) by Gender,
Scotland

The unemployment (16+) rate for men in Scotland decreased by 1.3
percentage points from 6.5 per cent in 2015 to 5.2 per cent in
2016, driving the decrease in the overall unemployment rate over
the same period (down 1.0 percentage point from 5.8% to 4.8%).

The unemployment rate for women also decreased over the year
from 5.1 per cent to 4.4 per cent (0.6 percentage point
decrease).

1.2.2 Age

The youth unemployment rate in Scotland decreased by 2.3
percentage points over the year to 12.0 per cent in
2016

The youth (16-24) unemployment rate in Scotland is the highest
of all age groups at 12.0 per cent (lower than the
UK rate of 13.3 per
cent).

Chart 29: Unemployment Rate (16+) by Age,
Scotland

The youth unemployment rate in Scotland decreased by 2.3
percentage points over the year and by 1.5 percentage points since
2008, while the
UK rate has decreased by
1.7 percentage points since 2008 and by 1.0 percentage point over
the year.

Unemployment rates have been generally decreasing for all age
groups between 2012 and 2016.

10.7 per cent of people aged 16-19 were
NEET in
2016, increase of 1.1 percentage points over the year

The number of 16-19 year olds who were not in education,
employment or training (
NEET) in
2016 increased by 2,000 over the year to 26,000
[13]. The proportion of 16-19 year olds who were
NEET in
2016 was 10.7 per cent. This is an increase of 1.1 percentage
points over the year, although this difference is not statistically
significant.

Chart 30: Proportion who were NEET (16-19) by
Gender, Scotland

The proportion of men aged 16-19 who were
NEET
increased by 2.2 percentage points over the year to 12.7 per cent,
driving the increase in the overall
NEET
proportion, while the proportion of women aged 16-19 who were
NEET
decreased by 0.2 percentage points to 8.7% over the year. Neither
of these changes were statistically significant.

Increase in the number of 16-19 year olds who were
NEET in
2016 was driven by a rise in 16-17 year olds who were
NEET

There is a clear difference between the trend for 16-17 year old
and 18-19 year old
NEET
rates.

Chart 31: Proportion who were NEET (16-19) by Age,
Scotland

Over the year, there has been an increase in the number of 16-17
year olds who were
NEET,
whereas the number of 18-19 year olds who were
NEET
remained fairly constant. The increase for 16-17 year olds over the
year is predominatly due to an increase in the estimated number who
were economically inactive.

The
APS is not able
to provide reliable data for those who are
NEET at
local area level. The Scottish Government in partnership with
Skills Development Scotland have developed a new participation
measure to address this. Information on this measure is available
at: